Bent Denim is a weird, charming band I have spent many years riding for. I once described the duo’s music as “a woozy, weary, uniquely modern strand of indie-pop — sort of an electro-organic twee with a Southern sensibility,” and I don’t think I’m gonna improve on that today, so consider it a fitting (re)introduction.

Town And Country, Bent Denim’s latest album, is named for a Nashville car dealership that apparently triggered some of the nostalgic longing that characterizes Bent Denim’s songwriting. The LP is about one month out, and today they’re sharing a typically drowsy, cozy, gauzy single called “Idiot.” Here’s what the band’s Ben Littlejohn says about it:

the song is a riff on the theme of losing your childlike sense of wonder. growing up and realizing that you kinda fit yourself into a box and using things to dull the emotions that come out because of that. im sure most people at some point at had long hair and zits.

the song started with that etherial 80s synth which dennis sent and it grew from there. I put alot of things through a vintage shure level loc compressor that i found at the nashville flea market. it’s an esoteric piece of studio gear that has a achieved cult status for fucking up sounds in a very musical and positive way. I was also able to use my families old upright player piano that allegedly came out of a saloon at the very end of the song. it has an almost tack piano quality and is super nostalgic for me because its the piano I grew up messing around on and playing Beatles songs from old player rolls.

there is no real song structure but just a forward narrative that kinda gets as big as it can and then drops down. almost as if it has a part 1 and part 2 but narrative-wise, it’s cohesive.

Listen below, where you can also find Bent Denim’s prior single “Chasing Catherine.”

Town And Country is out 5/11.